Ken Follett has come to the rescue of the cathedral of Dol-de-Bretagne, in western France. The Welsh writer will donate the 148,000 euros from the copyright of his book ‘Notre-Dame’ (Plaza & Janés) to the Heritage Foundation to help restore this jewel of Breton Gothic architecture.
When Follett watched the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral burn on April 15, 2019, he was “stunned and deeply affected” and “on the verge of tears.” ‘Notre-Dame’ was commissioned by its French publisher. It was published in book form two months after the fire. 113,000 copies have been sold worldwide.
The writer wanted with this book to contribute his own stone to the reconstruction of the Parisian cathedral, but did not want to take advantage of the drama. He thought at first about donating the money to Notre-Dame. But the monument was quickly showered with multi-million dollar donations from around the world.
Follett then asked that the copyright money for that book be turned over to the Heritage Foundation, one of three French foundations charged with raising funds for the Parisian cathedral and other monuments. Finally, the writer and the foundation have agreed to donate the money to the Cathedral of Dol-de-Bretagne. Denis Rapinel, the mayor of that Breton town, has shown himself enchanting with “this gift that falls from the sky”. “It is Christmas in the month of March,” he told the local press.
Thanks to Follett’s generosity, the money will soon be in the municipal coffers of Dol-de-Bretagne. The restoration and conservation of this Gothic cathedral places a heavy burden on this town of 6,000 inhabitants located near Saint-Malo and Mont Saint-Michel.
The Dol-de-Bretagne Cathedral, a historical monument since 1840, began to be built in 1203 and is in the Norman Gothic style. It is dedicated to Saint Samson of Dol, a late 5th century Christian figure considered one of the seven founders of Brittany. The restoration works, which began in 2019 and are scheduled to end in 2024, have a total cost of 2.4 million euros.
Follett, who has never visited Dol-de-Bretagne, hopes to do so soon, when the covid-19 pandemic ends. «I really like the west of France, where I often go on vacation and for my research work. I can’t wait to follow the evolution of the project and see how the money is going to be reinvested“, has said.
‘The Pillars of the Earth’ is Ken Follett’s best known work. This novel, of which it has sold 27 million copies, chronicles the construction of Kingsbridge Cathedral in medieval England. When Notre-Dame burned, many readers were reminded of this novel, in which Follett describes in great detail the fictitious cathedral fire.
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